There is a current need for a new method of transferring color copies of pictures on various articles of manufacture that have a smooth exposed surface that are cheap, simple, and suitable for single images or low volume production.
The advent of electrophotographic copying, commonly referred to as xerography or plain paper copying, has proved to be a highly successful process for reproduction of images on to paper with the inherent advantages of speed and reliability. In a conventional process, an electrostatic image of an object is formed on a recording member such as a plate or drum. The recording member may comprise a layer of photoconductive material, such as selenium, or a conductive metal layer. The latent electrostatic image which is formed on the photoconductive material is developed into a visible image by application of toner powder or liquid and the image is transferred to a sheet of paper and affixed thereon by fusing, e.g., by application of heat and pressure to form a permanent print. Full color images may be obtained by sequentially forming electrostatic color separation images on the recording member and using magenta, cyan, yellow and black toners in turn.
More recent developments in plain paper copiers include the ability to electronically store and image and output the image in sections at a predetermined level of magnification. Thus, a relatively large image may be output as a series of A4 or A3 sized sections ("tiled"), each of which bears a portion of the final image. When the tiles are placed in edge-to-edge abutment (after trimming any overlaps), the complete image is displayed.